Pizza Dip

My pizza dip is such a hit at parties that I was asked to put it on my blog. This recipe is so easy to change up and make it your own. Add anything to it that you would eat on your pizza and it's sure to become a fan favorite at your next party. This dip is great to take to a New Year's party, College Bowl party or even the next Super Bowl party. If you know me, you probably have had this dip. (Pictures to come soon.)

Ingredients:
2 8 oz. blocks of cream cheese
2 c. of motzerella cheese
1 c. of parmesean cheese
2/3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 c. of spaghetti sauce
Sour dough or Italian bread loaf, sliced
Directions:
Soften the blocks of cream cheese, add in 1 c. of the motzerella and the parmesean cheese and the garlic. Place at the bottom of a baking dish. Top with the spaghetti sauce and sprinkle remaining cup of motzerella. Bake at 350 until edges get bubbly. Serve with sliced bread.
* This reheats easily when needed as the parties go on.

Creamy Potato Soup

Need something to do with your leftover holiday ham? This soup is so filling and needs very little ingredients that you don't already have sitting in your refrigerator or pantry. It's great for cold nights and will definitely stick with you. This recipe comes from my Gene Allen's Cookbook: Seasoned With Love.
Ingredients:
1 med. onion chopped ( I used 1/2 that I had in the fridge.)
6 med. potatoes, cubed ( I peeled mine as well.)
3/4 tsp. seasoned salt
1 tsp. parsley
1 tsp. pepper
1 pt. half and half
1 c. shredded Velveeta cheese
1/2 lb. smoked ham hock, cubed and precooked ( I used the leftovers from Christmas.)

Directions: Boil onion and potatoes in saucepan with enough water to cover until vegetables are tender. Drain half the water off when cooked. Add salt, parsley, pepper, half and half, cheese and ham. Mash potatoes slightly to give a little softness to the soup. Cook, stirring constantly until the cheese melts.
So good! This is one we will serve again. Very easy.

Tortilla Cigars

This recipe comes from the new cookbook put out by Jerry Seinfield's wife. I took the liberty to not put in the vegetable puree that is incorporated into all of her recipes. Pictures of this finger food will come later.

Ingredients:
1 c. chicken
1/2 c. cheese (any of your choice)
4 oz. cream cheese
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. salt
6 tortillas

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with foil. Stir together the chicken, cheese, cream cheese, garlic powder and salt. Fill the tortillas and roll tightly. Bake for 4 ot 5 mins.

Should be a great finger food for any party! It was a hit and next time I might kick things up a notch by adding some wing sauce to the mixture. I cut them in half before serving.

Chicken Stir Fried Rice

Isn't it nice when you can take something from here and something from there and throw it in a pan and call it done? That is exactly what you do to prepare this quick and easy, semi-homemade meal.

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts

2 bags of Lipton (Knorr) chicken rice

1 bag of frozen stir fry veggies

Soy Sauce

Directions:

Cut your chicken into square cubes and cook until no longer pink in a skillet or wok. Add a dash or two of soy sauce to add flavor.

While cooking your chicken, cook the rice according to the directions on the bag.

Steam the veggies, again according to the directions on the bag.

When everything has finished cooking, throw into the wok and cook together for about 10 mins. Serve!

That's it.

Short, simple and semi-homemade.

This is sure to please your toughest critics. It is a great go to meal on the fly and one to have in your bag of tricks.

Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd's Pie- Quick and Easy

Ingredients:

1 lb of hamburger meat

1 bag of frozen steamed veggies (I did the peas and carrots.)

A box of instant potatoes (I cooked enough for 6 servings.)

1 can of beef broth

1/2 of an onion, chopped

1 tbsp of vegetable oil

Directions:

Saute onion in vegetable oil until soft. Add in hamburger meat and cook until brown. While cooking the beef, steam your veggies. Also cook your mashed potatoes. Add veggies to beef mixture when steaming is complete. A little at a time, add beef broth to make your mixture as "soupy" as you would like.
Preheat your oven to 350. Place the beef, veggie mixture on the bottom and cover the top with the mashed potatoes. Pour a little more beef broth in the pan. Cook for 15-20 mins.

Review: I liked this meal. It was super easy to fix and I was able to find short cuts from the original recipe given to me by someone I work with. My youngest son ate it up! However, my husband and oldest son chose to eat cereal instead. One did not like the mashed potatoes, while the other refused the vegetables. Half of my family thought this was a miss, while the other half enjoyed the variety. This recipe makes about 6-8 servings, so prepare when you have plenty of people there to share.

Wicked White Bean Chili

Wicked White Bean Chili

Ingredients:

2-3 chicken breasts

1 tbsp of olive oil

2 onions, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 (4 oz) can chopped mild green chiles, drained

2 tsp ground cumin

1 1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

3 (15 oz) cans of Great Northern beans, drained

1 (14 oz) can chicken broth

3 cups (12 oz) shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
salt and pepper to taste

sour cream

Directions: Boil your chicken and shredded or chop when fully cooked, set aside

Saute your onions in the olive oil for 10 mins or until tender. Stir in the garlic, green chiles, cumin, oregano, cloves, and cayenne pepper. Saute for 2 mins. Add the beans and broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 mins, stirring occasionally. Add the chicken and 1 cup of the cheese to the bean mixture and mix well. Simmer until the cheese melts, stirring frequently. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with remaining cheese and top with sour cream. I served mine in bread bowls.

Review: AMAZING! I had this dish served to me one night at a friend's house and new I had to have the recipe. I then made it for another set of friends for dinner and she had to have the recipe. This chili is absolutley a must have and a huge hit to whomever you serve it to. You will love it!

Mexican Chicken Tortilla Soup

This recipe was sent to me via one of my Facebook friends. She found the recipe in the Reverse Diabetes magazine. Thanks Amber for reading and submitting!

Mexican Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:

6 Corn tortillas- cut into 2 inch strips

1/2 tsp of chili powder

2 tbsp of olive oil

1 sm green bell pepper- chopped

1 jalapeno- chopped

3 scallions (green and white parts) chopped

3 cloves of garlic

2 large tomatoes-seeded and chopped

1 can (14 oz) of low sodium chicken broth

1/4 c of water

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp salt

6 OZ of chicken breasts (ounces not 6 chicken breasts!) cut into strips

1/4 shredded monterey jack cheese

2 tbsp chopped cilantro

4 lime wedges

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400

2. Place tortillas on baking sheet, coat with cooking spray and sprinkle with chili powder, bake until desired crispness (ours was about 10 mins)

3. Meanwhile, use the cooking oil to saute bell peppers, scallions, garlic until the scallions get tender (2-3 mins)
4. Add broth, water, cumin, coriander, and salt. Bring to a boil.

5. Add chicken, cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked

6. Serve. Divide the soup into bowls, top with strips, cheese, cilantro and squeeze with lime.

Review: In school, we teach kids how important it is to read all the directions before you begin. I should've taken my own teaching advice. As the meal was cooking, we began wondering if we were doing it right because things just didn't look "normal". We didn't know what it was, but we knew something was wrong. I kept re-reading the directions and I couldn't figure it out. Dusty then read them and realized that I had misread the recipe. It called for 6 oz of chicken and I was cooking 6 chicken breasts!!!! So, we removed some of the chicken and did the best we could with what we had left. The fresh ingredients are such a key to this recipe, that removing the chicken (or starting with WAY TOO much chicken) did not hinder the taste at all. This soup is so packed full of flavor. It was very refreshing! It's definitely one to try.

Lemon Cream Chicken

Lemon Cream Chicken

Recipe:

Chicken breasts (2)

chopped onion (1 cup)

chopped carrot (1 cup)

chopped celery (1 cup)

sliced fresh mushrooms (2 cups)

chicken stock (1 cup)

Italian seasoning (1 tsp)

salt (1/4 tsp)

pepper (1/4 tsp)

water (1 tbsp)

cornstarch (1 tbsp)

sour cream (1/4 cup)

lemon juice (1 tbsp)

Directions:

1. Cook your chicken breast on medium heat for 5-10 mins, until brown

2. Layer the next four ingredients in order given, in a slow cooker. Arrange chicken over vegetables. Combine next 4 ingredients in a small bowl and pour over the chicken. DO NOT stir. Cover, cook on low 8-10 hours or on high 4-5 hours.

3. Stir water into cornstarch in small bowl until smooth. Add sour cream and lemon juice. Stir. Add to chicken mixture. Stir. Cover. Cook on high for about 5 mins until sauce is thickened.

From: Everyday Slow Cooking

Review: This was one of our first times to cook in a crock pot during the week. It was so nice to come home and not have to worry about dinner or cooking.

Since it was in the middle of the week, I prepared all the vegetables and chicken the night before. This allowed me to wake up the next morning, throw it all together and then be done until I came home from work. Because we were unsure about the chicken not being cooked all the way and sitting in the refrigerator over night, I chose to cook it until done. (I think this might have added to the chicken being a little dry.) Now if I was doing this again on the weekend, I would follow the directions as is.

This was one of the more flavorful meals that I have prepared. This is not necessarily and eye pleasing dish, but it tastes really good. We served it over steamed white rice.
My husband is not a fan of the vegetables but he did enjoy the chicken. I loved it all! The aroma fills the house and makes this a good recipe to put into the "comfort food" category.

Stir Fry Chicken with Green Peppers

Stir Fry Chicken with Green Peppers

Prep Time: 20 mins (5 to prepare and 15 to cook)
Recipe:
2 chicken breasts- dice into 3/4" cubes
4 TBS Szechuan Stir Fry Sauce (any brand)
1 TBS corn starch
4 TBS of vegetable oil (original recipe calls for Garlic and Ginger Stir Fry Oil, but I couldn't find it at the grocery store)
1 small can of water chestnuts-drained
2 medium green peppers-remove seeds and dice ( I slice mine, but wish I would've diced)

2 cups white rice (cook according to package)
Directions: Coat chicken with stir fry sauce and corn starch.
Heat oil in wok until hot, then add the chicken mixture and stir constantly until almost done. Next, add water chestnuts and green peppers. Stir another minute and serve hot over rice.
We served the dish with edamame. This added an extra crispy flair and color.

Review: This has to be one of our favorites that we have tried. As I was making it, things didn't appear to be going the way that I had envisioned them being. The sauce just didn't look quite right, but the longer I let it cook, the better it turned out. Both my 4 and 2 year olds loved the crunch of the water chestnuts and the bell peppers. The sauce was tangy and not too spicy the way chinese food tends to be. The rice gave the meal a little more substance. This is a must try and there will be no left overs!

Ramen Chicken Noodle Soup

This week's recipe is Ramen Chicken Noodle Soup.
Prep time:20 mins from beginning to end
Recipe:
1 chicken breast
3 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp of olive oil (enough to coat a frying pan)
2 slices of Kraft American cheese
2 packages of chicken Ramen noodles
(Serves two)

Directions:
Slice your chicken breast and saute in crushed garlic and oil until cooked, set aside to rest. Cook the Ramen noodles according to directions on the package, drain off some of the water. Return to low heat and add a slice of American cheese to each bowl. Divide into the bowls. Stir until cheese is completely melted. Add chicken.

Review: I am a fan of Ramen noodles even without the chicken so adding the chicken gave it a new texture. The more water you choose to leave in the noodles, the soupier it will be. The less water you have, the creamier it will be. It was a hit with the youngest in our family and the adults thought it was okay. I would not recommend this meal if you are extremely hungry. It's a lighter meal, good for lunch. (An alternative to the sauteed chicken, try adding bacon bits to give it a crunch.)